In a US Army now more memory than real, an AIT instructor used "learning curve" on the first day of class at Fort Huachuca to tell us we would not all learn at the same rate, but just the same, we would all learn.I'm technophobic; however, the weblog phenomenon impresses me as a revolution in communication.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Red pill in the military for masculinity in society

I wrote this comment in response to Rollo Tomassi's latest post, Mr. Softee, which is about an Army veteran who is alpha in masculine terms but was beta with women. Update: Rollo Tomassi wrote a post, Soldiers, based on my comment, plus his AMA (ask me anything) at reddit.

Rollo,

Military men ought to be a targeted audience for your red-pill teachings.

As an Army veteran, I can attest that being socialized as a soldier is to learn positive masculinity in terms of a man among men. While not immune from political correctness, there is a stand-off distance from civilian society that preserves within the military perhaps our last best repository of traditional masculine values and culture.

Before I joined the Army, the military seemed alien and threatening. What I found, instead, is the nature of soldiering just made sense to me on a basic level as a man that I had not experienced before the Army. Soldiering opened my eyes to the intrinsic higher value of manhood. I have not found the same masculine fit since returning to civilian society. (Granted, I didn’t become a cop.)

However, the Army does not cure Beta. The military – as you imply – does not teach soldiers how to handle women and deal with feminism. When soldiers apply the 7 Army values (loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, personal courage) to women, they simply don’t receive the same positive feedback they get from applying the Army values on the job among soldiers. If anything, their heightened engagement with masculinity in male terms obscures their understanding of women. Editorially, I believe the disjunction between the masculine culture of the military and the feminized culture of civilian society is an unacknowledged reason why many seemingly capable veterans are tripped up in their transition from military life to the civilian world.

The masculine values that soldiers learn are invaluable, and our society would be made healthier and stronger if veterans could spread those values upon their return to civilian society. However, in their current condition, military-sourced masculine values are fragile in the context of feminized civilian society.

I believe the solution is adding formative red-pill teachings to the traditional masculine lessons received by impressionable young soldiers. Doing so will empower and protect the soldiers in their immediate personal lives, especially important for the soldiers who are anxiously distant (Dear John, Jody) from their love objects. And, by the time they are mature veterans returning to civilian society, their traditional masculine values hybridized with red-pill awareness should be robust enough to thrive in feminized civilian society. From their success, the combination of red pill and traditional masculine values can spread.

Update: Red-pill blog The Woman and the Dragon has a new post observing the integration of girls with Boy Scouts that dovetails with Tomassi's posts and my comment. The Boy Scouts and the military both embody men's traditional gender role, which at their respective foundings, was reciprocal and complementary with women's traditional gender role. Today, boys continue to be acculturated to carry out men's traditional gender role, whereas girls are no longer acculturated with women's traditional gender role. Keoni Galt, a former Boy Scout, has discussed the Boy Scouts fostering positive masculinity.